Khalid serenades audiences at the WaMu Theater, the Seattle International Film Festival kicks off, and Frye Art Museum explores the origins of impressionism.

Film

SIFF 2018

May 17–June 10 The largest film festival in the country returns for its 44th year. Not only is the Seattle International Film Festival the best annual opportunity to take in a vibrant collection of cinema from around the globe (more than 400 films from 80 countries, to be exact), the SIFF Opening Night Gala remains one of the glitziest red-carpet events of the year, one that ends with an after-party full of local bites and dancing. Various Locations, siff.net

Theater

Jack &

May 10–13 A young woman from a prominent family attends a ball welcoming her into society. In another time and place, a man incarcerated during his formative years rejoins the world without ceremony, endless challenges ahead. Jack & explores themes of reentry by examining the damage incarceration inflicts on a person, juxtaposing prison reentry with real and imagined rituals of entry and ascension, like debutante balls and family success stories found in early sitcoms. On the Boards, ontheboards.org

Visual Art

Towards Impressionism

May 22–Aug 5 Even the most casual art enthusiast can pick out a Monet: the swift brushstrokes, the dreamy landscapes. But such defining work didn’t come to fruition in a bubble. Frye Art Museum’s new exhibition, Towards Impressionism, provides an origin story for an art movement, tracing masters of impressionism back to the rural paintings of the Barbizon school and other works interested in emotion over photorealism. Frye Art Museum, fryemuseum.org

Concert

Khalid

May 3 Khalid Donnel Robinson launched into fame at 18 with his single “Location”—a soulful three and half minutes anchored by infectious bass lines and a smoky voice evocative of a male Erykah Badu. With a platinum debut album, American Teen, released last year and an appearance on the Black Panther soundtrack, Khalid now takes on his first international tour. Not bad for someone too young to order celebratory champagne. WaMu Theater, washingtonmusictheater.com

Books & Talks

Captain Scott Kelly

May 23 After spending 340 consecutive days in space aboard the International Space Station—the longest such streak of any American astronaut—captain Scott Kelly captured the imagination of those back on planet Earth. Now retired, Kelly shares what he learned from his pioneering voyage, complete with photos and videos from way up there. McCaw Hall, mccawhall.com

Concert

P!nk

May 13 Of all the starlets of the Total Request Live days, Pink came out on top—as relevant to the pop landscape with her 2017 album Beautiful Trauma as she was singing alongside Christina Aguilera in “Lady Marmalade” 17 years earlier. KeyArena, keyarena.com